In this episode of the Scouting for Growth podcast, Sabine VdL talks to Mike Minett, CEO or Chief Ideas Guy at Portabl. Portable is a platform and community which provides insurance, benefits, and savings products for freelance and self-employed professionals.
In this podcast, Mike and Sabine cover: Why Mike decided to move from consulting to building an InsurTech focused on the future of work, what Portabl’s focus and core proposition are, what is required to build a gig economy-focused startup, and a little bit of ESG and the Future of Tech.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

• We exploded out of the gate and got some opportunities in the US which was probably too big for us for where we were at in our journey. So, we made the decision to come back and technically build and launch again out of London. Then we got a bit of Covid interruption when we were due to close our first round of funding in March 2020 and things fell apart at that point, but interestingly Portable and our proposition to serve and support the independent, freelance, and gig world of work continued to be interesting and Covid accelerated everything. So, on the one hand, we lost time, but actually, I think the timing will work out even better for us as we prepare to finally launch into the market. It’s been a journey!
• We want to create a portable structure that wraps around the individual and follows them with whatever they’ve got going on, whatever pieces of work they might have on the go, for whichever client they might have on the books, and ultimately, across any geographies that they might be traveling to and working through. The old model is no longer fit for the way people are choosing to live and work.
• Building an insurance business has its challenges, especially considering the regulatory constraints and the risk profiling requirements, which is our secret sauce – ‘frisk’, our freelancer risk. People’s underwriting score and credit score both drops simply because they’ve become independent, yet this is the same person with the same network, the same skills, and experiences, and potentially the same career trajectory. Why should they face biases and penalties just because they are independent? The only reason is that the models are built for the old world.
• At Portabl, we’re trying to tackle risk profiling through data and analytics, getting a better understanding of these individuals, to present that story back to our insurance and credit partners on behalf of these individuals so they get a better and fairer deal. We try to free up a lot of time and stress for our customers so they can concentrate on their work.
• Insurance for good is a good thing, but people don’t wake up in the morning and say “I wish I had more insurance”, they don’t even know what they have, what they don’t have, what they should probably have, and that it’s a lot more affordable than they probably think. A lot of our insurances come with really nice features like access to a virtual GP, counseling and mental health support, physio, etc. 

 

BEST MOMENTS

‘The fear of startups and the whole concept is that you need to be doing more faster and you’re constantly watching the clock.’
‘By 2023, 50% of the world’s workforce is going to be working independently in some shape or form. Who’s looking after this new 50%? While today they are few, they will become a major portion of the working population tomorrow. That was the genesis for the idea of Portabl.’
‘As an independent, it’s precarious, if you lose your health. Your health impacts your ability to earn. And if you lose your ability to earn, this also impacts your health. We really concentrate on the health and wellbeing piece by trying to keep our members happy, healthy, and productive.’
‘The laptop and the mobile phone are the most critical business tool for many of us, do you have them insured? You really should because all your data, your IP, and your knowledge are likely to be either on your phone or on your laptop. Independent workers don’t have the company to replace the phone or laptop.’

ABOUT THE GUEST

Mike Minett is the CEO and founder of PORTABL.co, an all-in-one, a data-driven platform providing portable insurance, benefits, and savings products to the world's freelancers and gig economies – nicely wrapped up in a single monthly membership bundle. PORTABL.co does the heavy lifting for these new and typically underserved markets, saving members’ time, money and stress with easy-to-understand and use risk and financial products.
Mike is no stranger to disrupting the market with unique perspectives on the twenty-first-century workplace – driven by a rich understanding of the impact of demographics. After a 20-year consulting and management career across fintech, insurance, and risk management for global investment banks, Mike launched The Positive Ageing Company, a SaaS-based data business focused on addressing the challenges and opportunities of the global aging workforce. That start-up was acquired by MMC Inc. (Mercer) in 2016.
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mikeminett/

PORTABL.co is empowering the world's independent workforce and the future of work.
Portabl has built the world’s smartest platform and community providing flexible financial wellbeing, health benefits, and insurance products to the 50% of the workforce living and working as part of gig-based economies. 

At its heart is our proprietary FRISC Score – set to challenge traditional underwriting and credit scoring of independent workers.
Never has our mission to better serve and support the world’s independent workforce been more important and relevant.
Website: https://www.portabl.co/

ABOUT THE HOST

Sabine is a corporate strategist turned entrepreneur. She is the CEO and Managing Partner of Alchemy Crew, a venture lab that accelerates the curation, validation, & commercialization of new tech business models. Sabine is renowned within the insurance sector for building some of the most renowned tech startup accelerators around the world working with over 30 corporate insurers & accelerating over 100 startup ventures. Sabine is the co-editor of the bestseller The INSURTECH Book, a top 50 Women in Tech, a FinTech and InsurTech Influencer, an investor & multi-award winner. 

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